“I’m not going to make excuses…”

Written By: - Date published: 7:32 am, February 22nd, 2011 - 25 comments
Categories: accountability, john key - Tags: , ,

Monday 21 Feb:

Key apologises over handling of BMW purchase

Prime Minister John Key has apologised over the handling of the purchase of 34 ministerial BMWs. …

“The whole thing has been sloppy and frankly, the public deserves better,” he said. “I’m not going to make excuses. The matter should have been handled better by everyone, including myself.”

Monday 21 Feb:

Staff apology over ‘sloppy’ BMW deal

Earlier today [Key] told NewstalkZB the Government did not handle the BMW limos issue well because it was preoccupied by the death of Private Kirifi Mila and the visit of Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

The all things to all people act is getting pretty thin now isn’t it. I’m not usually in the habit of offering political advice to Nats, but on this occasion I just can’t bear it any longer. Hello – John Key – shut the hell up about the BMWs. Stop explaining. Stop digging. Please.

[Update: Key signed four papers relating to the BMWs last year. I suppose he has no recollection of that, just as his chief of staff, Wayne Eagleson, has no memory of the meeting and emails he had on this issue – Eddie]

25 comments on ““I’m not going to make excuses…” ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Marty G 1
    22 February 2011 at 8:00 am

    The thing is, even if you accept the logic that lifetime value is maximised by reselling after 3 years (relatively low maintenance, high resell etc) the Nats didn’t have to by Beemers to replace the other Beemers. Buy some $80,000 car at half retail instead.

    Or, better yet, keep them for 10 years. I’m sure that the value for money would actually start to improve after a few years once the vehicles are fully depreciated.

  2. lprent 2
    22 February 2011 at 8:00 am

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4685548/PM-signed-papers-relating-to-BMWs

    Yep. Big hole.

    His chief of staff was doing some of the direct work on the project. So far Key seems to be using variations on the dog ate my work.

    • r0b 2.1
      22 February 2011 at 8:27 am

      So Key personally signed off on this in four documents in March April 2009. April 2010 a sample vehicle was imported and Key was subsequently taken for a test drive (video).

      And yet he’s still telling us that he didn’t know about the deal, and some in the media are still believing him…

  3. vto 3
    22 February 2011 at 8:28 am

    Mr Sloppy is just that.

  4. tc 4
    22 February 2011 at 8:54 am

    This issue is a fantastic example of the MSM’s unwillingness to state facts and let the punters decide objectively.

    So they do the minimum, follow sideshow john’s lines (wasn’t my fault…I was too busy having my photo taken….it’s the public service’s fault etc) and I see today that one of granny’s resident nat sycophants armstrong bypassing the facts and saying how great it is we have a PM who admits he’s done wrong………………forgetting he’s lied through his teeth time and again to his employers i.e. you and me taxpayers.

    • Tigger 4.1
      22 February 2011 at 9:20 am

      And I still don’t see that he’s admitted he was wrong…he’s only really said he was sloppy…

      • Draco T Bastard 4.1.1
        22 February 2011 at 1:07 pm

        He hasn’t. At no point has JK said he was wrong. All he’s done is try and distract from what he did do.

  5. M 5
    22 February 2011 at 9:16 am

    The classic maxim ‘friend to all, friend to none’ applies.

  6. Todd 6
    22 February 2011 at 9:46 am

    It appears that Shonkey Honkey is lying through his teeth or Merrill Lynch has removed his brain, either way he is unfit to be our PM.

  7. Bunji 7
    22 February 2011 at 10:19 am

    Are we going to have to start calling him Janus Key?

  8. Deadly_NZ 8
    22 February 2011 at 10:48 am

    Why can’t he do the honourable thing and fall on his sword?? Oh thats right he has no honour.

  9. marty mars 9
    22 February 2011 at 10:53 am

    we knew it would happen and it has – branki has slipped and the vacuous PM has been exposed as a sham. Making hay time methinks – relentless pushing of the line by labour – make him slip up again and then he will attack and that can be used against him. Surely even the MSM hacks are sick of him – they tend to enjoy the fall better than the rise – “in like a needle out like a plough” – the hole is there.

    • kriswgtn 9.1
      22 February 2011 at 11:10 am

      “Surely even the MSM hacks are sick of him”

      Where/Who will they get their pay offs (wine ) from then?

  10. gobsmacked 10
    22 February 2011 at 11:01 am

    Here’s the money quote. I am – er, gobsmacked.

    “Mr Key signed off on three documents … which referred to the fleet replacement. Then last March he signed off on another statement of intent which made two mentions of the new cars.

    Mr Key said yesterday he had not read the documents.”

    What would happen to a private sector CEO, or department head, or senior hospital administrator, or anybody else in charge, who signed off on a multi-million dollar deal … without reading it?

    What else has John Key not read, before signing? Trade treaties? Hobbit deals? His house purchase?

    Oh wait, that last one was his own money. He’ll have read that very carefully.

    Now he should read his resignation letter, and sign it.

  11. ianmac 11
    22 February 2011 at 11:08 am

    On Radio National News just now at 11am on BMWs.
    John Key said “It would be impossible to read everything that he signs!”
    Wow! Imagine that. The PM who has time to pose for celebrity photos does not have time to read what he signs? A bigger hole?

    • Lanthanide 11.1
      22 February 2011 at 12:22 pm

      I’m sure it’s the truth, but for any document if he doesn’t have time to read it, he should get an assistant to summarise it into 1 paragraph before he reads the document, highlight important sections, and bullet point any important dollar figures or time frames.

  12. tc 12
    22 February 2011 at 11:36 am

    The more this plays out the more swinging voters should realise they’ve put a wealthy, out of touch, lazy, clueless clown in charge along with an equally ineffective and lazy dealing rooom (cabinet) and vote accordingly.

    Blinglish’s comments on the beemer issue are just as arrogant and out of touch and deserve a run in the MSM but they’re too busy helping the govt’s spin …..a decent MSM would’ve had the PM on his knees over this begging for mercy and not give any as it’s the lies that get you in the end.

    Going to be an interesting year as they’ll stick with smile’nwave regardless and he may end up being as much a liability as an asset once the chooks start returning to the roost.

    • Colonial Viper 12.1
      22 February 2011 at 11:40 am

      Going to be an interesting year as they’ll stick with smile’nwave regardless and he may end up being as much a liability as an asset once the chooks start returning to the roost.

      They’ve become tired and error prone at the start of an election year. Time to turn the pressure up another notch 🙂

      The NATs will really fall apart if Key’s polling falls to the 40% level.

      • Lanthanide 12.1.1
        22 February 2011 at 12:29 pm

        Nah, I think it’s only danger zone once it gets to mid-thirties. Depends if Goff or someone else picks up the slack, too.

  13. Kevin Welsh 13
    22 February 2011 at 12:24 pm

    Who would have thought that Rodney Hide would have been 100% right on something?

    Key is a do-nothing PM.

  14. the pink postman 14
    22 February 2011 at 1:44 pm

    Don’t underestimate this slimy bastard. Just this morning in response to the Welfare Committee report he said I am queasy about sending Solo Mums back to work when their child is 16 weeks old . He has all the solo mums thinking what a nice man! The Tory publicity machine is superb . I just wonder how we expose this conman ,

  15. randal 15
    23 February 2011 at 11:46 am

    yesterday he was hanging his head as if the earthquake was his fault.
    why didnt he stand proud instead of simpering.
    anyway he is going to have to raise taxes to pay for the devastation of the christchurch and any wimpering from those who want a new jetski or harvey davison will just have to be brushed aside in the interests of not only good but proper governance.
    ruling gnew zealand is not all beer and skittles and selling bonds to the clientele in miami.

  16. Rharn 16
    25 February 2011 at 5:14 pm

    Only a fool signs a document without knowing it’s contents.